Mangere Inlet

Mangere Inlet is an arm of the Manukau Harbour

Manukau Harbour

Manukau Harbour is the second largest natural harbour in New Zealand by area. It is located to the southwest of the Auckland isthmus, and is an arm of the Tasman Sea.-Geography:...

, the southwestern of the two harbours of Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with a population approaching 1.4 million residents, percent of the country's population. Demographic trends indicate that it will continue to grow faster than the rest...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous smaller islands, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands. The indigenous Māori named New Zealand Aotearoa, commonly translated as The Land of the Long White Cloud...

 and itself an arm of the Tasman Sea

Tasman Sea

The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately 2000 kilometres across. It extends 2800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first...

. The inlet lies between the two cities of Auckland City

Auckland City

Auckland City is the city and local authority covering the Auckland isthmus and most of the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, in the North Island of New Zealand. Auckland City is the most populous city in the country, with a population of It lies in the Auckland Region, and the Auckland Regional...

 and Manukau

Manukau

Manukau City is a large city in the Auckland Region / Greater Auckland area of New Zealand. The city is sometimes referred to as South Auckland, but this term does not possess official recognition and does not encompass areas like East Auckland, which is within the official boundaries of Manukau City...

, two of the four cities which make up the Auckland conurbation

Conurbation

A conurbation is an urban area or agglomeration comprising a number of cities, large towns and larger urban areas that, through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban and industrially developed area...

, and extends east for 4 km. It is 1800 m wide at its widest point.

It is surrounded by the suburbs of Te Papapa

Te Papapa

 - to the north-east
 - to the east
 - to the south
 - to the south-west
 - to the west
 - to the north-west

Penrose
Mount Wellington
...

, Southdown

Southdown, New Zealand

Southdown is an industrial suburb of Auckland City, New Zealand. The former main company in the suburb was the Southdown Freezing Works, part of a large industrial zone located near the main trunk railway at this point...

, Westfield

Westfield, New Zealand

Westfield is an Auckland suburb.This was once the site of the Westfield Freezing Works, part of a large industrial zone located near the main trunk railway at this point. The buildings were decommissioned during the 1980s & 1990s releasing large areas of land to be redeveloped as office parks...

, Otahuhu

Otahuhu

 - to the south-east
 - to the south
 - to the south-west
 - to the west
 - to the north-west
 - to the north
|  
East Tamaki
Otara
...

, Mangere East, Favona

Favona

 - to the east
 - to the south-east
 - to the south
 - to the west
 - to the north-west

Mangere Inlet
Harania Creek
Mangere East
Mangere
Manukau Harbour
Mangere Bridge
...

, and Mangere Bridge

Mangere Bridge, New Zealand

Mangere Bridge can refer to two places in New Zealand:*Mangere Bridge, New Zealand, a suburb of Auckland City*Mangere Bridge , the bridges that gave the suburb its name...

. The narrowest point on the Auckland isthmus

Isthmus

An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas. Of note, the Isthmus of Panama connects the continents of North and South America , and the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt connects Africa and Asia .Canals are often built on isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to...

 is at Otahuhu

Otahuhu

 - to the south-east
 - to the south
 - to the south-west
 - to the west
 - to the north-west
 - to the north
|  
East Tamaki
Otara
...

, where the coast of the Mangere Inlet is a mere 1200 m from the Otahuhu Creek, which ultimately feeds into the Hauraki Gulf

Hauraki Gulf

The Hauraki Gulf is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has a total area of 4000 km², and lies between the Auckland Region, the Coromandel Peninsula, and the Hauraki Plains. Hauraki is Māori for North Wind.-Gulf:...

.

The Mangere Bridge

Mangere Bridge

Mangere Bridge, officially also called the Manukau Harbour Crossing, is a motorway bridge over the Manukau Harbour in south-western Auckland, New Zealand, crossing between the suburb also known as Mangere Bridge and the suburb of Onehunga...

 crosses the western end of the inlet where it joins the main body of the Manukau Harbour. At this point the inlet is about 750 m wide.

For many years the abattoirs located here were discharging large amounts of untreated waste into the Manukau Harbour. This had a detrimential effect on the ecology of the harbour which at the turn of the 20th century had been a popular and attractive place to swim, sail, fish and gather shellfish. For most of the middle of the 20th century it was a health hazard and its shell-fish a probable source of food poisoning. Since the freezing works disappeared the water quality has improved greatly.

Portage Road is the location of one of the overland routes between the two harbours (and thus the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...

 and the Tasman Sea

Tasman Sea

The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately 2000 kilometres across. It extends 2800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first...

), where the Maori would beach their waka

Waka (canoe)

Waka are Māori watercraft, usually canoes ranging in size from small, unornamented canoes used for fishing and river travel, to large decorated war canoes up to long...

 (canoes) and drag them overland to the other coast, thus avoiding having to paddle around Cape Reinga

Cape Reinga

Cape Reinga is the northwesternmost tip of the Aupouri Peninsula, at the northern end of the North Island of New Zealand. Cape Reinga is located over 100 km north of the nearest small town of Kaitaia. There is a road all the way but the final 19 km are 'metal' road...

. This made the area of immense strategic importance in both pre-European times and during the early years of European occupation.